NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Social Science (Economics) Chapter 3 Poverty as a Challenge

NCERT
SOLUTIONS
CLASS - 9th

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Book - Economics Ncert Solutions | Chapter-3 Economics

Class : 9th
Subject : Economics
Chapter : 3
Chapter Name : Poverty As A Challenge

Q1 Why do different countries use different poverty lines?

Answer. Different countries use different poverty lines because
(a) The calorie requirement of different human races is different depending on their physical
condition and dietary habits. Those races which have greater height and build require higher
calories.
(b) The per capita income in different countries is also different i.e., per capita income is
higher in developed countries as compared to developing countries.
(c) The standard of living of Western countries is higher than that of developing countries.
(d) The cost of essential items used in calculating poverty line is higher in the developed
countries.

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Q2 What do you think would be the “minimum necessary level” in your locality?

Answer. I live in a city so the poverty line should be calculated according to the urban area. In
the year 2000, the urban poverty line was xed at ` 454 per month per person. Now in the year
2012 seeing the high level of in ation and price rise it should be at least 1500 per person per
month.

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Q1 Study Table 3.1 and answer the following questions:

(a) Even if poverty ratio declined between 1993–94 and 2004–05, why did the number of poor
remain at about 407 million?
(b) Are the dynamics of poverty reduction the same in rural and urban India?

Answer. (a) The poverty ratio declined between 1073-74 and 1993-94 but the number of poor

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remained at about 320 million because the total population of the country increased during
the same period. Out of this increased population more people got employment due to the
green Revolution, establishment of more industries and growth of the tertiary sector. As result
the poverty ratio declined.

(b) No, the dynamics of poverty reduction are not the same in rural and urban areas because
the conditions in both the areas are completely different. Urban area poverty has decreased
due to expansion of the service sector, increased industrialisation and consequent increase of
jobs. This has resulted in migration to cities and towns from rural areas. Rural area poverty
has reduced due to improved agricultural practices resulting in higher incomes. Some
contribution to this improvement is due to the migration to urban areas.

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Q1 Which social and economic group do they belong to?

Answer. There is a poor family living near our colony. They are living below the poverty line
and belong to lowest socio-economic category.

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Q2 Who are the earning members in the family?

Answer. The wife and husband are casual construction labourers and they are the earning
members of the family.

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Q3 What is the condition of the old people in the family?

Answer. The old people of the family, i.e., the grandparents are physically weak and suffering
of old age diseases and problems without proper medical aid

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Q4 Are all the children (boys and girls) attending schools?

Answer. There are two girls and one boy in the family. Because of poverty, the father of the
children Bhola is only able to send his son to school and the daughters help in the household
work.

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Q1 Study the Graph 3.2 and do the following:

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(a) Identify the three states where the poverty ratio is the highest.
(b) Identify the three states where poverty ratio is the lowest.

Answer. (a) Three states where poverty ratio is the highest are
(i) Orissa 47.2%,
(ii) Bihar 42.6%,
(iii) Madhya Pradesh 37.4%

(b) Three states where the poverty ratio is the lowest are
(i) Himachal Pradesh 7.6%
(ii) Punjab 6.2%
(iii) Jammu and Kashmir 3.5%

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Q1 Study the Graph 3.4 and do the following:

(a) Identify the areas of the world, where poverty ratios have declined.
(b) Identify the area of the globe which has the largest concentration of the poor.

Answer. (a) The areas of the world where poverty ratios have declined are
(i) South Asia
(ii) East Asia and Paci c
(iii) China
(b) South Asia is the area of the globe which has the largest concentration of the poor.

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Q1 Describe how the poverty line is estimated in India?

Answer. A common method used to measure poverty is based on income or consumption
levels. A person is considered poor if his or her income or ption level falls below a given
minimum level necessary to ful ll consumption needs.
(a) While determining the poverty line in India, a minimum level of food requirement,

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clothing, footwear, fuel and light educational and medical requirement etc are determined for
subsistence. These physical quantities are multiplied by their price in rupees.
(b) The present formula for food requirement while estimating the poverty line is based on the
desired calorie requirement.
(c) Food items such a cereals, pulses, vegetables, milk, oil, sugar etc together provide these
needed calories. The need of calories depends on age and the work done by a person.
(d) The accepted average calorie requirement in India is 2400 calories per person per day in
rural areas and 2100 calories per person per day in urban areas.
(e) The calorie requirement of the people in rural areas is higher than that of the people living
in urban areas because they do more physical work as compared to urban people.
(f) On the basis of these calculations for the year 2000, the poverty line for a person was xed
at 328 per month for the rural areas and 454 for the urban areas.
Despite less calorie requirement the higher amount for urban areas is because of the high
prices of many essential products in urban centres.

Q2 Do you think that present methodology of poverty estimation is appropriate?

Answer. No, the present methodology of poverty estimation is inappropriate because it takes
into account only the basic needs of food clothing, fuel, etc. But the quality of these basic
necessities is the lowest quality available, which is not appropriate.
(a) The amount which is xed as the poverty line does not include the margin for price
uctuations and price rise which is constantly occurring.
(b) The poverty line should include some correction for in ation and to take care of the market
uctuations.

Q3 Describe poverty trends in India since 1973?

Answer. There was a substantial decline in poverty ratios in India from about 55 % in 1973 to
36 % in 1993.
(a) The proportion of people below poverty line further came down to about 26 % in 2000.
(b) If the trend continues, people below poverty line may come down to less than 20 % in the
next few years.
(c) Although the percentage of the people living under poverty declined in the earlier two
decades (1973-1993) the number of poor remained stable around 320 million for a fairly long
period.
(d) The latest estimates Indicate a signi cant reduction in the number of poor to about 260
million.

Q4 Discuss the major reasons for poverty in India?

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Answer. The various causes of poverty in India are Colonial Economic Policies
(a) One historical reason of poverty in India is the low level of economic development under
the British colonial administration.
(b) The policies of the colonial government ruined traditional handicrafts and discouraged
developments of industries and textiles.
(c) The low rate of growth persisted until the 1980s. This resulted in less job opportunities and
low growth rate of incomes.
(d) The government failure on both fronts. i.e.. promotion of economic growth and population
control perpetuated the cycle of poverty.
Not Enough Jobs in Industries
The Industries set up in the public and private sector provided jobs to many people but the
number of job seekers was far more than tile jobs available and a large number of people
remafned unemployed leading to poverty.
Revolution and Employment
(a) The Green Revolution enabled multiple cropping or growing of 2 to 3 crops in, year, which
created demand for labour in the agriculture sector. However, the Green Revolution was
limited mainly to Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh and provided limited
opportunities of work.
(b) The poor farmers could not buy inputs for farming and landholdings were small. Thus their
production was low and the poor peasant families could hardly survive.
(c) The poor, especially in rural areas had to take loans for farming inputs and many times
were unable to repay the loan. Thus they fell into a debt trap, leading to a worse situation.
(d) Another cause of poverty has been the huge income inequalities.
(e) Many communities like the Dalits, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes had traditionally
been deprived of education, land and social status.
Consequently, they have not been able to raise their standard of living in the absence of
education, land and other resources.
(f) To ful ll social obligations and observe religious ceremonies, people in India including the
very poor, spend a lot of money. They hardly have any savmqs, so they borrow money and are
unable to repay the loans because of low income, thus falling into a debt trap leading to
extreme poverty.
(g) Small farmers need money to buy agricultural inputs like seeds fertilisers, pesticides etc tor
which they have to take loans which they are unable to repay, thus tailing into a debt trap
leading to extreme poverty.

Q5 Identify the social and economic groups which are most vulnerable to poverty in India.

Answer. (a) The social groups which are most vulnerable to poverty are scheduled caste and
scheduled tribe households.
(b) Similarly, among the economic groups, the most vulnerable groups are the rural
agricultural labour households and the urban casual labour households.

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Q6 Give an account of interstate disparities of poverty in India.

Answer. (a) The proportion of poor people is not the same in every state.
(b) Government has made many efforts to reduce poverty by following various programmes
but the success rate of reducing poverty is different in different states.
(c) In 20 states and union territories the poverty ratio is less than the national average.
(d) Poverty is still a serious problem in Orissa, Bihar, Assam, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh.
(e) Orissa and Bihar continue to be the two poorest states with poverty ratios of 47% and 43 %
respectively.
(f) There has been a signi cant decline in poverty in Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra
Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and West Bengal.
(g) States like Punjab and Haryana have traditionally succeeded in reducing poverty with the
help of agricultural growth rates.
(h) In West Bengal, land reform measures have helped in reducing poverty.
(i) In Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, public distribution of loodqrams has been responsible
for the reduction of poverty.

Q7 Describe global poverty trends.

Answer. The proportion of people in developing countries living in extreme economic poverty
i.e, on less than $ 1 per day as de ned by World Bank has fallen from 28 % in 1990 to 21 % in
2001.
There has been a substantial reduction in global poverty, but it is marked with great regional
differences
(a) Poverty declined substantially in China and South Asian countries as a result of rapid
economic growth and massive development.
(b) The number of poor in China has come down from 606 million 1981 to 212 million in 2001.
(c) In the countries of South Asia ( India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan) the
decline has not been so rapid, it has declined marginally from 475 million in 1981 to 428
million in 2001.
(d) In the Sub Saharan Africa, poverty rose from 41 % in 1981 to 46 % in 2001.
(e) In Latin America the ratio of poverty has remained the same.
(f) Poverty has resurfaced in some of the former socialist countries like Russia, where it was
non- existent earlier.

Q8 Describe current government strategy of poverty alleviation?

Answer. The current anti-poverty strategy of the government is based broadly on two planks
Promotion of Economic Growth

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(a) India's economic growth gained momentum and since the eighties has been one of the
fastest in the world.
(b) The growth rate jumped from the average of about 3.5 % a year in 1970's to 6 'Yo dUring the
1980's and 1990's.
(c) The higher growth rates have helped signi cantly in the reduction of poverty.
(d) It is becoming clear that there is a strong link between economic growth and poverty
reduction.
(e) Economic growth widens opportunities and provides resources to invest in human
development.
(f) This also encourages people to send their children. including girls. to schools in the hope
of getting better economic returns from investing In education.
Targeted Anti-Poverty Programmes
Promotion of economic growth was a long term time solution to the problems. but a need was
felt for short term target oriented anti-poverty programmes which the government ultimately
undertook. Some of the programmes to remove poverty are
(a) National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) 2005
(b) National Food for Work Programme (NFWP) 2004
(c) Prime Minister Rozgar Yojana (PMRY) 1993
(d) Rural Employment Generation Programme.(REGP) 1995
(e) Swamjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) 1999
(f) Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yozana (PMGY) 2000
(g) Antyodaya Anna Yozana (AAY)

Q9 Answer the following questions brie y
(i) What do you understand by human poverty?
(ii) Who are the poorest of the poor?
(iii) What are the main features of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005?

Answer. (i) Human poverty is a de nition of poverty which takes us beyond the general
de nitions of poverty i.e, not having enough money. Being able to earn a xed amount as set
by the government as poverty line does not actually free them from poverty.
A person who is unable to get proper education and shelter and nutritious food, or if a child is
forced to child labour or they face social and caste discrimination, then they come under
human poverty.
(ii) Women, elderly people and female infants are the poorest of the poor is society.
Women, elderly people and the girl child are systematically denied equal access to the
resources available in the family. That is why they and considered the poorest of the poor.
(iii) The main features of National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 are
(a) The act provides 100 days assured employment every year to every rural household in 200
districts. Later the scheme will be extended to 600 districts.
(b) 1/3rd of the proposed jobs would be reserved for women.
(c) The central government will also establish National employment Guarantee Funds.
Similarly, the State Government will also establish the State Employment Guarantee Funds for

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the implementation the scheme.
(d) Under the scheme if an applicant is not provided employment within 15 days he/she will be
entitled to a daily unemployment allowance.

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